1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of making a liquid crystal display device and a liquid crystal display device made by the method. More specifically, the invention relates to a new method of providing orientation/alignment of liquid crystal molecules.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, research has been made in an attempt to develop new types of display devices to replace the cathode ray tube (CRT). Among the various new types of display devices, a liquid crystal display device, which is thin and can be operated with small power consumption, is expected to find wide applications in household electric appliances and office automation equipment.
An alignment layer, which is a component of such a liquid crystal display device, is an insulating film whose surface is treated to provide orientation/alignment of liquid crystal molecules. A rubbing treatment, which is one of these alignment treatments, is known conventionally.
A rubbing treatment rubs on the surface of the insulating film with a fiber member like a cotton or a cloth. As a result, the insulating film has an ability to align liquid crystal molecules. The direction of rubbing usually determines the direction of orientation and pretilting up of the liquid crystal molecules (the direction of alignment). The decision of the direction of alignment determines the direction of vision and characteristic of vision of the liquid crystal display device.
The rubbing treatment, however, has difficulty of establishing and controlling conditions and problems of repeatability. Moreover, the rubbing treatment has a problem of dust from the fiber member such as cotton or a cloth, which dust is not suited for clean room required cleanliness.
Japanese Patent Disclosure (KOKAI) No. 6-43458 discloses a method of orientating liquid crystal molecules in order to solve the problem of the dust and the difficulty of rubbing treatment. According to that publication, the method includes forming a direction on a film, and contacting the film on a substrate for printing the direction on the substrate, and taking the film off the substrate. This method does not have the problem of dust and the difficulty of the rubbing treatment because the method does not require the rubbing step.
The present inventor has investigated the method of that publication, and believes the disclosed method has the problem of not inducing pretilting up of liquid crystal molecules. Although a liquid crystal display device ordinarily requires a pretilt angle of 1.degree..about.6.degree., the method has a problem that the method can not induce the pretilt angle. Accordingly, it can not be effectively applied to a liquid crystal display device.